Washita Attack

We have just passed the 140th anniversary of the Washita massacre.

The attack at the Washita was an attack upon a predominantly peaceful village. It may have contained a few warriors who had been involved in the recent depredations, but the majority of the village was innocent.

Black Kettle (who was over seventy years of age when he was killed at the Washita) wanted peace. When talking about Cheyenne raids carried out earlier in 1868, he said "I have always done my best to keep my young men quiet, but some will not listen... But we all want peace... I cannot speak [for] nor control the Cheyennes north of the Arkansas".

His fellow Chief, Little Rock (also killed at the Washita) said that "another small party [of the warriors who had carried out the 1868 attacks - not the whole war party] returned to Black Kettle's village".

Little Rock went on to say "I do not wish to be at war with the whites, and there are many of my nation who feel as I do, and who are in no way guilty, and do not wish to be punished for the bad acts of those who are guilty".

Following on from Little Rock’s comments, it is clear that the majority involved in the depredations actually went unpunished. To that extent, the attack was not only a travesty, but it failed to target those whom Sheridan and Custer allegedly wanted to punish.

Good online resources relating to the Washita include:

http://home.epix.net/~landis/washita.html

‘Lodge Pole (Washita) Massacre (November 1868) The Families' Stories’.

And this one, which has some of the contemporary reports, including Custer's report to Sheridan:

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~wynkoop/webdocs/bwashita.htm

Good balanced accounts of the attack are contained in Stan Hoig’s ‘The Battle of the Washita’, Jerome Greene’s ‘Washita’, Donald Berthrong’s ‘The Southern Cheyennes’ and Richard Hardorff’s ‘Washita Memories’. Also worth tracking down is 'The Eyes of the Sleepers' by Peter Harrison (Published by the English Westerners Society www.english-westerners-society.org.uk)

With regard to casualties, about 12 or 14 warriors were killed at the Washita. The figures vary, but most non-military estimates support these figures. There is evidence that some casualties were counted more than once. Hence the much higher figure of 103 given by Custer.

Custer reported that some women and a few children were killed. Ben Clark (Custer's scout who was married to a Cheyenne woman – see the earlier posts) estimated a total of 75 women and children casualties. Other non-military estimates for women and children killed vary from about 20 to about 40. Most non-military sources agree that more women and children than warriors were killed. A good summary of these figures is contained in Hardorff's 'Washita Memories'.

Custer called the officers together after the attack and asked them for estimates of Cheyenne casualties. It is of course likely that more than one of the officers had seen the same casualties. Their estimates were however totalled to provide a figure of 103 warriors killed. This it is now generally accepted to be an exaggeration

Soldiers were killing women and children. Ben Clark reported this to Custer "and asked him if it was his wish that these people should be killed". It was only then that Custer told Clark to "give his compliments" to the officer in charge and "ask him to stop it".

Twenty-two soldiers were killed at the Washita. A total of eighteen in Elliott's detachment; Elliott, Sergeant Kennedy and sixteen troopers. They were killed chasing a group of mainly women and children who had fled towards the other camps. The warriors who killed Elliott and his men came from the other camps. They were not from Black Kettle's camp. Captain Hamilton was killed at Black Kettle's village, together with two troopers. A third trooper died of his injuries.

Two white captives were killed at the time of the attack upon Black Kettle’s village; Clara Blinn and her young son, Willie. The circumstances of their deaths are however shrouded in contradictions. There is no evidence that Clara and Willie Blinn were killed by the Cheyennes. There is evidence that both were killed by cavalry fire. Indeed, the army went to great pains to deny this at the time, but the military accounts of their deaths are contradictory.

The allegation usually made in relation to the deaths of the Blinns is in fact that they were killed by the Arapahos or Kiowas, not the Cheyennes; they were not in the Cheyenne village. Indeed, the military accounts of the discovery of their bodies and wounds are contradictory. There is a growing body of thought that they were in fact killed by the troops.

Jesse Leavenworth and Albert Boone, agents for the Comanches and Kiowas, reported that their enquiries indicated that the troops had killed the Blinns. Leavenworth and Boone’s involvement resulted from the fact that Custer and Sheridan blamed the Kiowas or the Arapahho, not the Cheyennes, for killing the Blinns.

There was a very good analysis of the the deaths of Clara and Willie Blinn by Joe Haines in the Summer 1999 volume of Chronicles of Oklahoma. After sifting through the evidence, Haines concluded that "[t]he most believable scenario has Clara and Willie Blinn in Black Kettle's village at the time of Custer's attack. As they attempted to flee from the village, they were pursued and killed by one of Custer's men".

It was alleged that four white scalps were found in the village. There is however no evidence to support this. It is based upon an unsubstantiated claim by Sheridan. It was not mentioned in Custer's reports on the attack. Even if the scalps were found, they do not prove that the whole village was hostile. Indeed, they would not even prove that the person in possession of the scalps was responsible for taking them.

As for the question: was it a battle or a massacre? It is interesting to note that Captain Benteen felt the need to use inverted commas when writing to a friend about "our 'battle of the Washita' ". In his ironic account of the aftermath of the battle, he talks of the dead bodies of a [Cheyenne] woman and a child. No mention is made of warrior casualties. Benteen clearly did not think that it was an heroic victory.

There was no excuse for the killing of women and children by the troops. Or the murder of Pilan, the Mexican trader who was in the village at the time of the attack. He surrendered to the troops and was then shot. In fact, he was treated very similarly to Jack Smith, John Simpson Smith's mixed race son, who was murdered at Sand Creek.

Burials At Whirlwind Cemetery

This monument at the Whirlwind cemetery is engraved on three sides with the names of persons buried in the cemetery. Here are the names listed:



Denison Whirlwind: June 4, 1901
Mrs. Standing Twenty: June 24, 1901
Infant Turkey Legs: Sept. 12, 1901
Hookla Turkey Legs: Sept. 20, 1905
Carrie Red Shin: Sept. 4, 1905
Big Belly Woman: Sept. 13, 1905
Chancey Sun Maker: Sept. 14, 1905
White Bird: Sept. 17, 1905
Bessie Pendleton: Sept. 18, 1905
Lizzie Pendleton: Sept. 19, 1905
Little Bear Cook: Sept. 21, 1905
Child of Mack Shortneck: Mar. 4, 1906
Mrs. Mack Shortneck: Sept. 11, 1907
Mother of Turkey Legs: Oct. 31, 1907
Infant of Mrs. Shortneck: Nov. 10, 1907
Mrs. Elk River: Aug. 1899
Child of Moore Van Horn: Aug. 5, 1899
Child of Howling Crane: Aug. 12, 1899
Little Woman Bobtail Wolf: Jan. 27, 1900
Fanny Hill (Crooked Nose Black): Feb. 2, 1900
Child of Mack Shortneck: Mar. 17, 1900
Child of Lewis Blun: Mar. 1900
Blanche Warpath: Apr. 27, 1900
John Shortman: May 18, 1900
Mabel G. Oakerhater: 1 months June 4, 1900
Short Nose: July 29, 1900
Mary Antelope Skin: Aug. 27, 1900
Mrs. Howling Crane: Sept. 18, 1900
Della Black Owl: Mar. 26, 1901
Elizabeth Tall Meat
Harriet Riggs
Burnet Rising Elk
Nistro Herald
Thomas Smith
Harriet Antelope Skin
Red Wolf
Perfumery Blue
Leroy Whiteshield
Killing Before
Sarah Lucy Good Bear
Little Woman Mohea
Charlie Big Nose
Mary Apache
David Herald
Susie and Mary Stanton, twins
Edward Riggs: age 1 Apr. 7, 1898
Ralph Rising Elk: Oct. 1898
Child of Blackowl: Jan. 3, 1899
Mrs. Star: Feb. 9, 1899
James Rouse: May 20, 1899
Mrs. Sun Maker: May 23, 1899

Mrs. Thomas Turkey Legs 1866 – 1922
Infant daughter of S & M Riggs 1908 – 1910

Whirlwind Cemetery

This book "The Peace Chiefs of the Cheyennes" by Stan Hoig is an excellent source of information. Two particular Cheyennes are discussed in detail:

"At the end of October, 1873, a delegation of Southern Cheyenne and Arapaho chiefs from the Cheyenne agency, headed by Little Robe and Whirlwind and escorted by Agent John D. Miles, arrived in Washington, D.C.....Little Robe answered that the Cheyenne and Arapaho chiefs were for peace....."

This web site decribes the Whirlwind Cemetery west of Watonga, Oklahoma: "This is an old cemetery 1/2 mile north of the site of the Whirlwind Mission and school (named for the Cheyenne Chief Old Whirlwind…..)" Here is a photo of the entrance:

In 1885, Chief Whirlwind visited the school at Carlisle, Pennsylvania with a delegation of Cheyennes. He was also part of a delegation visiting Washington D.C. in 1895. Other members of the delegation were Southern Cheyennes Little Wolf, Little Chief, Cloud Chief, White Horse, plus Arapaho chiefs Row of Lodges and Left Hand. Interpreters were Robert Burns and Clever Warden.







This is a photo of the historical marker in the Whirlwind Cemetery. The marker is engraved with "In memory of the people of Whirlwind Episcopal Church and the Rev'd. David Pendleton Oakerhater, Deacon.

Duncan's Crossing

Two different historical markers are located at Duncan's Crossing of the Pawnee Fork River on the military road from Fort Hays to Fort Dodge. A marker (see this web site) was placed in 1929 by a local ladies aid society in honor of George Duncan and John O'Loughlin, who established a trading post at the location beginning in 1869.

A second marker can be seen at this web page. Duncan's Crossing is located in Hodgeman County, which adjoins Ness County.

Nearby in Ness County, the site of the Cheyenne village (described in the previous post) is now the property of the support group called The Fort Larned Old Guard: "One of the most exciting projects the Old Guard has undertaken is that they have purchased the Cheyenne-Sioux Indian village site northwest of Fort Larned in Ness County, the same site when in April of 1867 General Winfield Scott Hancock burned this village to start what was later called "Hancock's War". Living history activities are being held on the site, see this web page.

1867 Cheyenne village, Pawnee River

This 1870 map of Kansas represents the area along the Pawnee Fork river near Fort Larned. Ness County is the green area of the upper left portion of the photo.

In 1867, the 7th Cavalry marched west out of Fort Larned on an expedition "designed to give the central plains Indians a lesson and to provide a response to the Fetterman Massacre that took place the previous year." This web site describes the Hancock Expedition which resulted in the destruction of the Cheyenne village. Here is part of the story:

"On the expedition was a half French, half Cheyenne scout by the name of Edmund Guerrier. He reported to General Hancock on the evening of Sunday, April 14, 1867, that the Indians were leaving the camp on the Pawnee. Hancock gave the order to Colonel George Custer and the 7th to surround the village. Custer's surgeon, Isaac Coates, described the scene..........On April 19, Hancock's order to destroy the "nest of conspirators" was carried out. Three companies of the 37th Infantry gathered the lodges, Buffalo robes, and the camp equipment into great piles and set everything ablaze."

Over 100 years later, two researchers discovered the location of the Cheyenne village: "George and Earl were able to pinpoint the village, along with every stop and feature on the route taken by the Army. In their search, they had worked east along the river to within a mile of the site from the west. From the east end going west, they had just gotten to the place called Duncan's Crossing. With this new information and map in hand, they began exploring the village site and discovered it was rich in artifact material. Most of what the two found was found with metal detectors. George and Earl found iron trade items that were used to trade with the Indians, kettle parts, gun parts, tin cups, and cartridge cases. There were also iron objects altered by Indians for uses such as awls, scrapers, points, and knives. They also excavated non-iron items; stone points, pot shards, rubbing stones, clay pipes, glass, and beads. They noted that material was often in groupings or piles of similar items. There were many burned areas."

The history and location of Duncan's Crossing is described by a web site from Santa Fe Trail Research: "Duncan's crossing was originally founded by John O'Loughlin, a young Irish immigrant who had come west to find his fortune. It was his work as a teamster for the Army Quartermaster Department that probably led him to this spot in the trail that linked Fort Dodge to Fort Hays. After the railroad reached Hays City in 1867, the army shipped their supplies by rail to Hays City and used wagons to transport them on the Fort Dodge. Thus, the trail between the two forts was established by the Army. O'Loughlin chose his location well. It was half way between the forts of Hays and Dodge in Kansas, and located on the Pawnee River. It was difficult to cross, even in the dry season, because of the high banks, so he built a bridge to aid both the Army and civilians as they came this way."

Thus, Guerrier and Hancock and Custer were present at the Cheyenne village on the Pawnee Fork in Ness County near Duncan's Crossing. The location of the village has since been discovered. This is definitely someplace I would love to visit!

Smoky Hill Trail / Butterfield route

The origins of the Smoky Hill Trail, and, the route of the Butterfield Overland Dispatch are described at this Kansas Collection web site: The Notes of Howard Raynesford.

"When the great "Pathfinder", John C. Fremont, reached Bent's Fort, near the site of the present city of Las Animas on the Arkansas, on the return trip of his second great trans-continental exploration, agreably to his instructions he turned northeast to discover the head waters of the Kansas River and explore its course to its mouth. On July 8, 1844, he located the junction of several small sandy creeks which proved to be the beginning of the Smoky Hill River, and from there he followed and explored this stream through to Kansas City, reaching there the last of July. So far as is known, Fremont's little party of 16 men were the first white men to traverse this Smoky Hill route, and, following his report, the Government seems to have recognized the importance of the Smoky Hill as part of a national highway, and topographic surveys were commenced along its course. But there was apparently no attempt to lay out a trail until gold was discovered in the Pikes Peak and Clear Creek regions of Colorado in 1858."

And, "Though the Government was using it some, as were probably many emigrant parties and gold-seekers, the life of the Smoky Hill route really began when David A. Butterfield took hold of it in 1865."

Additional web sites: Tails and Trails of the Smoky Hill River,
Smoky Hill Trail History

Colorado - Kansas Border / Smoky Hill River

George Bent described the 1864 Sand Creek Massacre in "Life of George Bent" (by George E. Hyde). Bent and other survivors ".....could stand the cold no longer, and although it was still pitch-dark and long before dawn, we left that place and started east, toward the headwaters of the Smoky Hill, where we knew Indians were encamped....."

On page 161 is a hand drawn map which shows the location of the Cheyenne camp where the survivors took refuge. The village was on the Smoky Hill river where it crossed the Colorado - Kansas border. This was just west of where Fort Wallace was established a few years later, as shown on the map in the previous post.

And, on page 120 is a map which shows the Western Cattle Trail just to the east of Fort Wallace. An excellent source of information on the Western Cattle Trail is the book "The Western" by Gary and Margaret Kraisinger.

1870 Kansas Map

This is an 1870 map showing the location of Fort Wallace near the Kansas/Colorado border. I found the map at the University of Alabama historical maps web site.
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Bent Brothers and Fort Wallace

The profile of Charley Bent in The Encyclopedia of Frontier Biography places Charles and his brother George with the Cheyenne warriors who raided the vicinity of Fort Wallace in June 1867. Their war party could have participated in the attack described in the previous post.

Details about Fort Wallace can be found at this excellent web site from Santa Fe Trail Research: Fort Wallace, originally known as Camp Pond Creek, was the most western post in Kansas along the Smoky Hill trail, and from 1865 to 1878 bore the brunt of the hostile Indian activity in the state.

Fort Wallace June 26th 1867

On the morning of Wednesday June 26th 1867, a party of Cheyenne Dog Soldiers and Lakotas launched a raid on the horse herd at Pond Creek Stage Station near the newly established Fort Wallace, Kansas. Soldiers of the 7^th Cavalry rushed to repulse the attack. The leader of the military force, Captain Albert Barnitz, claimed to have inflicted ‘severe’ losses upon the Indians. He also reported six soldiers killed and six wounded. One of the military losses was a young Englishman, Frederick Wyllyams, who had enlisted the previous year and who had attained the rank of Sergeant by the time that he was killed. A famous photograph was taken of Wyllyams' body as propaganda to encourage a greater effort to police and settle the great plains. The story behind the photograph is however as intriguing as the event itself. The following article is reproduced from The Crow's Nest, the biannual journal of the Custer Association of Great Britain (www.custer-association–gb.org.uk).

Frederick Wyllyams – The Photograph

It is often said that photographs do not lie. It is of course now well known that that statement is itself far from honest. History has shown us that ever since the birth of photography, the images produced have been manipulated and edited in order to misrepresent the picture that has been produced. In this context, how reliable is the image of Wyllyams’ corpse as a document of the skirmish in which he was killed? This question in fact demands further clarification, as there are two representations of Wyllyams’ body. The first to be published was not in fact Bell’s photograph, but an engraving published in Harper’s Weekly and reproduced in Bell’s account of his travels, New Tracks in North America. Indeed, Bell’s photograph was not reproduced in his book at all. Instead, the author, or perhaps his publisher, preferred the less graphic engraving. The article in Harper’s Weekly describes the engraving as being made “from sketches by Major A. R. Calhoun and Dr. Bell”.1

The description of Wyllyam’s body in the Harper’s Weekly article reported that:

“The body of Sergeant Frederick Wyllyams was also fearfully mutilated. His scalp was taken, two balls pierced his brain, and his right brow was cut open with a hatchet. His nose was severed and his throat gashed. The body was opened and the heart laid bare. The legs were cut to the bone, and the arms hacked with knives.”

Bell went into greater detail, saying:

“Sergeant Wylyams lay dead beside his horse; and as the fearful picture first met my gaze, I was horror-stricken. Horse and rider were stripped bare of trapping and clothes, while around them the trampled, blood-stained ground showed the desperation of the struggle.

“I shall minutely describe this horrid sight, not for the sake of creating a sensation, but because it is characteristic of a mode of warfare soon--thank God!--to be abolished; and because the mutilations have, as we shall presently see, most of them some meaning, apart from brutality and a desire to inspire fear.

“A portion of the sergeant's scalp lay near him, but the greater part was gone; through his head a rifle-ball had passed, and a blow from the tomahawk had laid his brain open above his left eye; the nose was slit up, and his throat was cut from ear to ear; seven arrows were standing in different parts of his naked body; the breast was laid open, so as to expose the heart; and the arm, that had doubtless done its work against the red-skins, was hacked to the bone; his legs, from the hip to the knee, lay open with horrible gashes, and from the knee to the foot they had cut the flesh with their knives. Thus mutilated, Wylyams lay beside the mangled horse. In all, there were seven killed and five wounded.

“As I have said, almost all the different tribes on the plains had united their forces against us, and each of these tribes has a different sign by which it is known.

“The sign of the Cheyenne, or "Cut arm," is made in peace by drawing the hand across the arm, to imitate cutting it with a knife; that of the Arapahoe, or "Smeller tribe," by seizing the nose with the thumb and fore-finger; of the Sioux, or "Cut-throat," by drawing the hand across the throat. The Comanche, or "Snake Indian," waves his hand and arm, in imitation of the crawling of a snake; the Crow imitates with his hands the flapping of wings; the Pawnee, or "Wolf Indian," places two fingers erect on each side of his head, to represent pointed ears; the Blackfoot touches the heel, and then the toe, of the right foot; and the Kiowa's most usual sign is to imitate the act of drinking.

“If we now turn to the body of poor Sergeant Wylyams, we shall have no difficulty in recognising some meaning in the wounds. The muscles of the right arm, hacked to the bone, speak of the Cheyennes, or "Cut arms;" the nose slit denotes the "Smeller tribe," or Arapahoes; and the throat cut bears witness that the Sioux were also present. There were, therefore, amongst the warriors Cheyennes, Arapahoes, and Sioux. It was not till some time afterwards that I knew positively what these signs meant, and I have not yet discovered what tribe was indicated by the incisions down the thighs, and the laceration of the calves of the legs, in oblique parallel gashes. The arrows also varied in make and colour, according to the tribe; and it was evident, from the number of different devices, that warriors from several tribes had each purposely left one in the dead man's body”.

The photograph of Wyllyams’ body shows the sergeant lying on a patch of grass with what appear to be five arrows protruding from his torso. His injuries are clearly shown in the photograph, as are his genitals which appear to have been the target of one of the arrows.

The etching is clearly based upon the same image, but shown from a slightly different angle so that Wyllyams right arm obscures his genitals. This was presumably a concession to Victorian sensibilities. The etching also shows six arrows sticking out of the victim. A closer examination of the photograph however reveals that a shadow on the right side of Wyllyams’ body might well be a sixth arrow viewed from a foreshortened angle.

On the face of it, the image is exactly what it purports to be. In Bell’s words, “a photograph of him, poor fellow, as he lay”. Bell tells us that Wyllyams “…lay dead beside his horse; …Horse and rider were stripped bare of trapping and clothes, while around them the trampled, blood-stained ground showed the desperation of the struggle”. The first thing that strikes the viewer of the photograph (and indeed the etching) however is that there is no horse shown in the picture. Further, there is no evidence of blood on the ground or trampled ground in the photograph. This leads the observer to question whether the photograph is in fact Wyllyams’ body. One possibility being that it could be an image of one of the other victims of the fight.

There are several potential answers to these questions. Firstly, it could be argued that the picture was taken from an angle which did not include the horse, even though it might have been lying nearby. Further, the photograph is not of first class quality; this might then explain why the blood stains and trampled earth cannot be seen. As for the suggestion that the photograph shows one of the other victims of the skirmish and not Wyllyams, this seems hardly credible in the light of the statements by not only Bell himself, but also the author of the Harper’s Weekly article, and Wyllyams’ commanding officer, Captain Albert Barnitz, all of who report that it was Wyllyams who was photographed by Bell. Perhaps the real answer can be found in Barnitz’s letter to his wife Jennie, written on 29^th June 1867, three days after the fight.2

Barnitz’s letter to his wife contains a good description of the skirmish, including the death of Wyllyams. Wyllyams was clearly known to Jennie Barnitz as Barnitz includes the comment that he was “..the one who fixed the tin protection to our stove pipe. –and who was such a gentlemanly soldier…”. More importantly, it throws some light upon the circumstance in which Bell took his photograph when he says:

"He also photographed the body of Serg’t Wyllyams, after it was brought to the post, just to show our friends in Washington, the Indian Agents, what fiends we have to deal with!”

This little phrase seems to explain the queries highlighted above. The horse, the blood and the trampled ground are not shown in the photograph because it was taken at the post and not at the scene of the sergeant’s death. If this analysis is accurate, Bell did not brave the battlefield to photograph Wyllyams “as he lay”, but waited until the body was brought in to the post. Such an interpretation is consistent with not only Barnitz’s letter, but also some of the comments in Bell’s own account.

Prior to giving his description of Wyllyams’ corpse, Bell gives an outline of the fight. He states that at the outset of the skirmish, he and others rushed out of camp with their rifles towards a nearby ravine. On finding that there were no Indians in the ravine, they “…returned to breakfast, feeling it undesirable to go farther unprotected and alone”. He then tells of a two hour wait that was brought to an end by “…a horseman from the field of action, who came to get an ambulance for the dead and wounded”. At no time does he talk of travelling to the scene of the fight with his camera (although he does mention the sight of the sergeant lying by his horse; artistic licence?).

Assuming that the body was photographed at the post rather than on the battlefield, this raises further questions about exactly how this was actually done. It seems unlikely that the body would have been brought in with five or six arrows still sticking out of it (or without breaking the arrows). If so, were the arrows removed at the site of the killing and stuck back in the body at the fort for the benefit of the photographer?

Although not mentioned by Bell, Barnitz or the Harper’s Weekly article, it would also seem that the Indian warriors removed a portion of tattooed skin from Wyllyams’ chest after he was slain. This piece of skin was subsequently recovered from the Cheyennes and is now part of the Paul Dyck Collection. The tattoo comprises strong British military symbols and shows a lion and a unicorn separated by a pile of cannon balls. Behind the creatures are six flags, each apparently a version of the royal ensign. In the centre is a royal coat of arms surmounted by a crown and peeping out from either side of the flags is a cannon. A photograph of the tattoo was reproduced in Colin Taylor’s The Warriors of the Plains.3

It would seem therefore that the photograph of the slain sergeant was almost as misleading following its subject’s death as was Frederick Wyllyams himself during his lifetime.

Notes

1. Late Indian Outrages (Harper's Weekly Magazine, 27^th July 1866), William A Bell – New Tracks in North America (London, 1869. Reprint, Albuquerque, Horn & Wallace, 1965).

2. Robert M Utley – Life in Custer’s Cavalry (Lincoln, University of Nebraska Press, 1987).

3. Colin F Taylor – The Warriors of the Plains (London, Hamlyn, 1975).

Brinton Darlington

The last post mentioned Brinton Darlington and the agency named after him.

Brinton Darlington, a Quaker, was appointed the agent for the Southern Cheyennes and Arapahos of the Upper Arkansas Agency, Oklahoma, in 1869.

In 1870, the Agency moved to what became its permanent location near Fort Reno. Darlington pursued what was known as the "peace policy", attempting to gently coerce his charges towards Christianity, farming and euro-centric education. Although well intentioned, he appears to have lacked an understanding of the damage that this policy was doing to native society and culture.

Darlington was the Agent for the Cheyennes and Arapahos for nearly three years. He died on May 1st 1872. He was buried at the Agency that bore his name and his grave is still sited at the Concho cemetery.

Caddo Springs and Concho Cemetery

The Caddo Springs Stage Station was located along the Chisholm Trail and is mentioned on this web site about El Reno, Oklahoma: Before the town of El Reno was born, a man by the name of Jesse Chisholm established the Chisholm Trail in 1866, where hundreds of herds of cattle would be driven north from Texas to Kansas where they would be loaded on trains headed to the east. On top of Concho Hill north of present day El Reno, the Caddo Springs Stage Station was established and soon became a major stopping point between Wichita, Kansas and Fort Sill, Oklahoma……….The Darlington Indian Agency was established in August, 1869 three miles north and two miles west of present day El Reno. The settlement and the agency took its name from Brinton Darlington, the agency’s first superintendent. Soon, the Cheyenne Indian School was established two miles north of Darlington in 1871.

Directly south of Caddo Springs is the location of the Concho cemetery. Brinton Darlington is buried there. The cemetery is on the hill overlooking the North Canadian river valley.



Also buried at Concho is Cheyenne Indian Robert H. Burns (1862 - 1930). His father, White Leaf, and other relatives were killed in the Sand Creek Massacre. A photo and short bio of Burns can be found at the Sand Creek Massacre web site. Burns, an interpreter, married Ada Bent (1867 - 1910), the daughter of George Bent. Ada is also buried at Concho.

The Cherokee Trail

I have been reading "The Contested Plains" by author Elliott West, and came across descriptions of the CHEROKEE TRAIL beginning on page 100. I did not recall hearing about this trail previously and began looking for more information.

According to Wikipedia, The Cherokee Trail, called the "Trappers' Trail," in Colorado was a historic trail through the present-day U.S. states of Oklahoma, Kansas, Colorado, Wyoming and Montana that was used from the late 1840s up through the early 1890s. The route was established in 1849 by a wagon train headed to the gold fields in California. Among the members of the expedition were a group of Cherokee. In 1849. lieutenant Abraham Buford escorting the mail from Santa Fe to the east turned south at McPherson, Kansas to follow the recently blazed Evans/Cherokee Trail to Fort Gibson, Oklahoma connected with another trail to nearby Fort Smith, Arkansas. Starting in 1850 the trail was used continuously by gold seekers, emigrants and cattle drovers from Arkansas, Texas, Missouri, and the Cherokee Nation. In all, approximately 35,000 or 10% of western emigrants traveled along the route.

Another excellent source of information is the Pioneering The Trail web site, which includes detailed maps. This trail began in the vicinity of Tahlequah in the Indian Territory and: traveling on the highlands between the Verdigris and Caney Rivers...... crossed the Walnut River at present El Dorado........ struck the Santa Fe Trail at Running Turkey Creek east of McPherson......Proceeding west along the Santa Fe Trail...... went to Bents Fort (CO). Leaving the Santa Fe Trail.......continued west up the Arkansas River to Pueblo.

The Cherokee Trail certainly adds another interesting dimension to the prairie trails of the Great Plains.

David Oakerhater and Robert Bent

Mentioned in the previous post about Fort Marion prisoners was David Pendleton Oakerhater, a Cheyenne warrior who was also known as "Noksowist" and "Okuhhatuh." A detailed article about him is available online, it is titled He Goes First, The Story of Episcopal Saint David Pendleton Oakerhater.

Also contained in the book War Dance At Fort Marion, on page 185, is this information:

He continued to represent the mission by christening babies and conducting funerals in both English and Cheyenne. For instance, in 1889 he preached at the funeral of Robert Bent. Standing at the open grave, he recited John 14:1-3.....

So, what I am trying to determine is the location of Robert Bent's grave. Robert's sister Julia is buried in the Geary cemetery near Edmund Guerrier. And his brother George is buried at Colony. But where is Robert buried?

WAR DANCE AT FORT MARION

WAR DANCE AT FORT MARION by Brad D. Lookingbill, University of Oklahoma Press, 2006. xiii, 290 pages, inc. illustrations, notes and index. Hardcover. ISBN 0-8061-3739-8. $29.95.

This book tells the story of the Cheyenne, Arapaho, Kiowa and Comanche Indians who, together with a single Caddo, were exiled to Florida in 1875 following the Buffalo or Red River War of 1874-75. The warriors were sent East under the supervision of Lieutenant Richard Henry Pratt in an attempt to isolate those who were perceived as trouble makers and to punish them for their involvement in the fighting.

The Indians were sent to Fort Marion, a stone castle or castillo near St. Augustine, Florida. The castle, which dates back to the late seventeenth century, was originally built by the Spanish, who called it the Castillo de San Marcos. It has had quite a lively history, having been captured by the British, returning to Spanish ownership, before passing to the United States when Spain ceded Florida to the young nation in 1821. Later, the castle changed hands twice during the Civil War, but had been virtually abandoned before by the time that it was re-commissioned as a home for the Indian prisoners of war.

A number of books have been written about the prisoners, or ‘Florida Boys’ as they were sometimes known. Most of those books have however concentrated upon the art work produced by the prisoners. A notable exception to that approach was the account by the man in charge of the prisoners, Lieutenant Pratt, whose memoirs were edited by Robert Utley and published in 1964 as Battlefield & Classroom (reprinted in paperback in 2003). Brad Lookingbill’s book is however the first synthesis of all available sources to produce a social history of the incarceration.

Lookingbill sets the scene for the imprisonment of the tribesmen, giving a necessarily brief account of the fighting in which the various tribes were involved. The single Caddo prisoner, Hu-wah-nee, who was accused of murder, seems to have been the only prisoner not accused involvement in the Red River War. Among the Cheyenne prisoners was a female warrior, Mochi, exiled for her part in the attack upon the German family, together with her husband Medicine Water, in September 1874. We also learn that the prisoners were also accompanied by three non-prisoners; the wife and child of the Comanche chief Black Horse and captive of the Kiowa leader Lone Wolf.

A total of seventy-five Indians were sent to St.Augustine, thirty-three Cheyennes, two Arapahos, twenty-eight Kiowas, eleven Comanches and the single Caddo. Only seventy-three arrived however as two Cheyennes were seriously injured, one fatally, in attempts to escape. The escapee who survived, Lean Bear, was finally sent on to Fort Marion after confounding medical science and recovering, despite being pronounced dead on two separate occasions.

Unfortunately, the Florida climate and the extremely basic living conditions at Fort Marion took their toll on the Indians, with a Kiowa falling ill and dying within the first week at the fort. Lean Bear in turn died less than six weeks after his arrival at St.Augustine. Despite these set backs, the Indians seemed to have done their best to overcome adversity.

Within months of their arrival, the reserve between the warriors and the residents of the surrounding area had broken down, with the Plains Indians becoming familiar tourist attractions, performing dances for visitors and exploring the locale. Many of them also sold characteristic ledger drawings to locals and visiting tourists. Today, the prisoners are perhaps best known for the art that they produced. Brad Lookingbill has however produced an admirable social history that celebrates the ability of the prisoners not only to endure the hostile environment in which they found themselves, but to adapt to an alien way of life.

Eventually, after nearly three years of captivity, the surviving prisoners were allowed to go home to Indian Territory. A number chose not to return however. Some of the former prisoners went on to study at Carlisle Indian School, four trained as Episcopalian missionaries, three went to live with one of the Fort Marion teachers and her husband where they continued to receive tutoring, while others studied at Hampton Institute. Many eventually returned to their tribes as prominent men, one of the most celebrated being the warrior artist Making Medicine who ended his days as David Pendleton Oakerhater, a retired Deacon of the Episcopal Church. Oakerhater, who died in 1931, was made an Episcopalian saint in 1985.

Fort Marion has been owned by the U.S. National Park Service since 1933 and is known today as Castillo de San Marcos National Monument. In appearance however, little has changed since the surviving prisoners of war from the Southern Plains finally left the fort in 1878. This book is recommended as a lively and detailed account of the three year period during which it accommodated a remarkably resilient group of people. Gary Leonard

(review courtesy of the English Westerners Society: www.english-westerners-society.org.uk)

A Band Of Brothers

This book, The Cheyenne and Arapaho Ordeal by Donald Berthrong, is a valuable source of well-documented information. On page 109 is the description of one particular event that has been of special interest to me.

The Cheyenne and Arapaho had been leasing portions of their reservation to cattlemen for grazing. By 1885 one group of Cheyennes led by Stone Calf were calling for the leasing program to be terminated. Stone Calf told General Sheridan that George Bent had made misleading or false statements in an effort to get the Cheyenne to agree to the leasing program. Stone Calf now insisted that George and Robert Bent, Ben Clark, and Ed Guerrier be removed from the reservation.

Stone Calf clearly did not like these four individuals, and it seems to me that he considered them members of a group. They were, actually, a band of brothers. George and Robert were children of William Bent, and Ed Guerrier had married their sister Julia. Ben Clark was a member of their extended family, having married Cheyenne women.

George, Robert, Ed, and Ben had all served as interpreters. Ed and Ben had also served as scouts. Each of these four individuals had also been involved, in one form or another, in the massacres at Sand Creek (1864) and the Washita (1868). Similar in age and experience, it is my opinion they likely held similar values and beliefs.

Ben Clark

The following information about Ben Clark is found in the PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD OF OKLAHOMA 1901:

Ben Clark is a typical frontier character, having the freedom of the sweeping prairies in thought and movement, and a breeziness and fearlessness about him engendered by long end intimate association with the red men of the plains, whose bravery, cruelty and picturesqueness are fast receding to the happy hunting ground, and into the dim wood shadows of the past, and whose strong, bold and ofttimes terrifying faces will soon live only on the painter's canvas, in the song of Hiawatha, and in the Alessandro of Ramona's dream.

Without a peer as a scout and Indian interpreter, Ben Clark has won his spurs, and for a life spent in such service has received the appreciation of the country, and the friendship of the Indians. That he could ever feel at all kindly towards the Indians argues a broad spirit of tolerance, for his father, Silas Clark, was killed by the Apache Indians in the Arizona desert in 1849 while crossing the plains for California. Silas Clark was young in years and enthusiastic for a life in the far west, and his untimely and cruel taking off at the age of thirty-four was indeed a blow to his family. His wife, Mary M. (Peters) Clark, died in Peoria, Ill., in March, 1865. An elder brother of Ben Clark, who lived in Joplin, Mo., was actively engaged in business there.

Ben Clark was born in St. Louis, Mo., February 2, 1842, and there spent his early childhood, going in 1855-6 to Fort Bridger, where he entered the government as post courier. From the very first he was engaged in adventures of a more or less adventuresome nature, and began with his appointment in 1857 with the expedition of Albert Sidney Tohnslon against the Mormons. He afterwards entered a battalion of United, States volunteers, and was engaged against the Mormons until mustered out in 1858. At the beginning of the Civil war he enlisted in an independent company of cavalry under command of Capt. Charles Clark, which company was subsequently attached to the Sixth Kansas, Arkansas, Missouri and the Indian Territory. He acted as guide for General Blunt during Price's raid into Missouri and Kansas (1864). At the close of the war Mr. Clark was employed by Indian traders to take charge of their mule trains and freighting through their country, and in this way was thrown into close relations with them, and became familiar with their language and customs. His advice was highly prized by the traders, who often consulted him when an outbreak was feared.

At the beginning of the Indian wars in 1868, Mr. Clark's services were eagerly sought by General Sully, in command of the government forces, at the time of the outbreak among the Cheyennes, Apaches, Arapahoes, Comanches and Kiowas. He was next attached to General Sheridan's command, as scout and guide, and spent several years with the western division of the army, giving valuable and conscientious assistance. After the Indian troubles had subsided, he was transferred to Camp Supply, Fort Reno, and has since been on the government pay roll. He was several times called upon to guide the army across the plains, and through the country where the Indians were troublesome. In 1874 he was with General Miles during his campaign against the Southern Cheyennes, Kiowas and Comanches, and was next with General Crook during the Sitting Bull outbreak. He was also in the Dull Knife campaign of 1878, and took an important part in the subduing of the northern Cheyennes.

To the commanders of the western posts, the services of Mr. Clark have been of inestimable value, and he has in his possession many letters from the various famous men to whom he has been a guide and counselor, as well as many relics which attest the friendship and confidence of the Indians. Through all the troublesome negotiations, and at times critical situations, he has ever been on friendly terms with the red men, who have trusted in his honor and have never been disappointed. He has often gone among them when they were on the point of rebellion, and by his diplomacy and tact has dissuaded them from their course. He is most complimentarily mentioned by General Sheridan in his memoirs, and in General Miles' book.

Mr. Clark's marriage was no less romantic and adventurous than the other incidents in his career. His wife was a full-blooded Cheyenne, and the mother of eleven children, seven of whom are living. All have good educations, and some are graduates of the Carlisle Indian School, while others are now acquiring their education.

Photos of Ed Guerrier

Photographs of Edmund Guerrier, like this one, can be found online at the Smithsonian here and here.




Edmund has sometimes mistakenly been called Edmond or Edward, as well as Ed, and even Ned.

This is a reference to Edmund found in the Kansas Historical Society Collections titled E. W. Wynkoop and the Bluff Creek Council, 1866:

"Edmond Guerrier (sometimes spelled Guerier), half-breed son of a French trader and Cheyenne mother, spent much time living with the Indians while also acting as interpreter for government Indian agents and commanders. He was considered reliable by authorities. At times he was called Ned Geary. -- Nye, Plains Indian Raiders, p. 254."

1865 Treaty of the Little Arkansas

There is a portion of the 1865 treaty with the Cheyenne and Arapaho that names Edmund Guerrier, along with several other people. This list of names, and the context of the list, has been of great interest to me. These people were some of the survivors of the Sand Creek Massacre, and each of them have amazing individual stories that are fascinating. Here is Article 5 of the treaty:

"At the special request of the Cheyenne and Arrapahoe Indians, parties to this treaty, the United States agree to grant, by patent in fee-simple, to the following-named persons, all of whom are related to the Cheyennes or Arrapahoes by blood, to each an amount of land equal to one section of six hundred and forty acres, viz: To Mrs. Margaret Wilmarth and her children, Virginia Fitzpatrick, and Andrew Jackson Fitzpatrick; to Mrs. Mary Keith and her children, William Keith, Mary J. Keith, and Francis Keith; to Mrs. Matilda Pepperdin and her child, Miss Margaret Pepperdin; to Robert Poisal and John Poisal; to Edmund Guerrier, Rosa Guerrier, and Julia Guerrier; to William W. Bent's daughter, Mary Bent Moore, and her three children, Adia Moore, William Bent Moore, and George Moore; to William W. Bent's children, George Bent, Charles Bent, and Julia Bent; to A-ma-che, the wife of John Prowers, and her children, Mary Prowers and Susan Prowers; to the children of Ote-se-ot-see, wife of John Y. Sickles, viz: Margaret, Minnie, and John; to the children of John S. Smith, interpreter, William Gilpin Smith, and daughter Armama; to Jenny Lind Crocker, daughter of Ne-sou-hoe, or Are-you-there, wife of Lieutenant Crocker; to — Winsor, daughter of Tow-e-nah, wife of A. T. Winsor, sutler, formerly at Fort Lyon. Said lands to be selected under the direction of the Secretary of the Interior, from the reservation established by the 1st article of their treaty of February 18, A. D. 1861: Provided, That said locations shall not be made upon any lands heretofore granted by the United States to any person, State, or corporation, for any purpose."

One name that seems to be missing from this list is Robert Bent. His brothers George and Charles, and his sister Julia are listed. Of course, Robert was not "inside" the Indian camp at Sand Creek, he was forced to lead the soldiers to the camp. To me, Robert was still a victim, don't you think?

WILLIAM BENT'S SISTER-IN-LAW

William Bent was married to Owl Woman, and then to her sister Yellow Woman. There was a third sister, named Making-Out-Road. Details are found in a book titled The Rath Trail:

"William Bent's wife Owl Woman also belonged to the tribe that had charge of the four sacred arrows which had been brought to the Cheyenne in the beginning of time by Sweet Medicine. According to family history and records John H. Seger obtained when Cheyenne Belle was entered at Darlington school, Roadmaker was a sister of William Bent's wife, [2] a fact not commonly known to historians."

And,

"Roadmaker's first marriage to Kit Carson lasted little better than a year, a time of violent quarrels. "

Later, she married Charles Rath:

"Before Charles Rath, who was twenty-four years old, took the plunge, however, he may have talked with William Bent. He has been quoted as saying there Were two ways to get on With the Indians-sell them liquor or marry into the tribe. He himself had chosen the latter, marrying Owl Woman first and after her death there was the sister Yellow Woman. So the young Rath's eye Was "peeled out" for Making-Out-Road, Whose name, Without doubt, he quickly shortened to plain Roadmaker."

William Bent and Kit Carson had been married to sisters. Later, according to the Women of Boggsville website, Kit Carson again married into the extended Bent family:

"Boggsville was founded by Thomas Oliver Boggs and his wife, Rumalda Luna Boggs. Rumalda was born into the Jaramillos of Taos, a very influential family in the early days of New Mexico.......Shortly after Rumalda's birth, her father died and left her mother, Ignacia Jaramillo, a widow. A few years later, Ignacia remarried. Rumalda's new father was Charles Bent, of Bent, St. Vrain and Co., builders of Bent's Fort.....In 1846, Charles Bent was named the new American Governor of New Mexico but on January 19, 1847, an angry mob of Hispanics and Taos Indians began the Taos Uprising. They stormed Bent's home and shot and scalped Charles Bent. By this time, Rumalda had married Tom Boggs and she and her aunt, Josefa Jaramillo Carson (wife of Kit Carson), were caught as they tried to escape from the house through a hole they had dug in the adobe wall. Held in the house by the rebels, Rumalda held her stepfather in her arms as he died."

Robert Bent and Bent Creek

This is an 1885 map illustrating the area around Cantonment in the Cheyenne Arapaho reservation. The post was located on the south side of the North Canadian River. A dashed line represents the military road from Fort Reno (south of the post) to Fort Supply (northwest of the post). A branch of the road turns west toward Cantonment.

A dashed line is shown continuing west from Cantonment along the south side of the river for a few miles, and then it stops at a creek.

This report from a Kansas newspaper identifies Robert Bent as the caretaker of Cantonment in 1882: "Caldwell Commercial, Thursday, October 19, 1882. The first copy of the Cheyenne Transporter our eyes have beheld for two months arrived yesterday, and is dated the 13th inst. We see by it that Agent Miles has placed Bob Bent in charge of the abandoned post at Cantonment and that the teams and wagons taken from Payne’s party have been sent north to be delivered to the owners. ......."

I believe that Robert Bent owned a ranch in this vicinity, and think that it may be possible that this road leading west from Cantonment may be a road to Bent's ranch. On modern maps, there is a Bent Creek in this vicinity. It is a few miles west of Seiling, Oklahoma.

Santa Fe Trail - Mountain Route

This is a portion of the NPS Santa Fe Trail map that shows the Mountain Route and the location of Bent's Old Fort. This map also shows where the Santa Fe Trail crosses the modern Colorado - Kansas border. The Santa Fe Trail follows the course of the Arkansas River in this region. This map also shows the location of the "Big Timbers" along the Arkansas River, a favorite Cheyenne camping spot.

Edmund Guerrier and Julia Bent

This family tree is from the Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site and displays children of William Bent. His daughter Julia was married to Edmund Guerrier. Julia and Edmund were both present at the Sand Creek Massacre (1864) along with her brothers George Bent and Charles Bent. Julia, Edmund, George, and Charles all survived the massacre.

Cantonment, Cowboys, and Robert Bent

A 1925 issue of the Chronicles of Oklahoma included the article "My Experiences With The Cheyenne" by author Henry C. Keeling. The article is available online at:

http://digital.library.okstate.edu/chronicles/v003/v003p059.html

The article describes Keeling's activities as the post trader at Cantonment, beginning in 1879:

"In the winter of 1879 I was appointed post trader at Cantonment, in what was then known as the Indian Territory. The post is described in the official records as "Cantonment on the west side of the North Fork of the Canadian River." This post was established a short time after the raid of Dull Knife, through western Kansas, in 1878. The site preferred for the post by General Sheridan was at what was known as Sheridan’s Roost, where he had been very successful in killing wild turkeys during the winter of 1868-9, although he finally selected a location in the hills at what is known as Barrel Springs. Col. Richard I. Dodge was in command of the Twenty-third Infantry at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, at the time the post was establishsed [sic]. He with a detachment of his regiment, left the cars at Dodge City and marched in by way of Fort Supply. When he reached Barrel Springs he was not satisfied with the location, it being in the sand hills, and he considered the place unhealthy. Colonel Dodge therefore located the cantonment about eight miles south, on the North Fork of the Canadian."

This incident was an example of some of the conflict taking place:

"In the spring roundup of 1881, I was with a party of cattlemen who were gathering cattle belonging to Robert Bent, a brother of George and Charlie Bent, and in some way a dispute arose between George Jones, foreman of the Dickey Brothers’ ranch, and an old Indian by the name of Gray Wolf, as to the branding of a cow. Jones was cutting out this cow for the Dickey brand when Gray Wolf claimed that it was his. The majority of the cattlemen at that time were not armed, and an Indian who had an old rifle handed it to Gray Wolf for the purpose of shooting Jones. We expected trouble right there, but through Bob Bent, who was a very cool-headed halfbreed , trouble was averted. It was a very tight place while it lasted, as Indians in the surrounding camps mounted their horses and came toward us with the intention of mixing in the fight should there be one."

The author also tells this story about Robert Bent:

"Speaking of Bob Bent, he was a son of Col. William Bent, of old Fort Bent, on the Arkansas River, and was educated in St. Louis. At one time he was at the Cantonment when quite a number of cowboys who were returning to Texas after delivering beef herds to the raliroad at Caldwell had stopped at the post and were telling what bad men they were, and more particularly as to their prowess in killing Indians. One party whom they had nicknamed "Milliner Bill," was very loud in his talk as to his being such a bad man. Bob Bent, speaking to Lieut. M. C. Wessells, of the Twenty-fourth Infantry, who was quartermaster at the post at the time, and myself, said that it would be a good joke on the cowboys to make a charge into the room and give the Cheyenne war whoop at the same time. He believed he could make it very interesting for them. So Lieutenant Wessells and myself, with Bent, mounted out horses and rode up the river, possibly half a mile. We then came back, riding very rapidly, and rode on into the room in which the cowboys were, Bob Bent and Lieutenant Wessells shooting and giving the Indian war whoop. These brave Indian killers; did not wait to go through the door but jumped through the windows, taking the sash and all with them. The last we saw of them they were on their way to Texas, not waiting to say "Good-bye.""

Robert Bent was the brother-in-law of Edmund Guerrier. Robert was the brother of Julia Bent, Mary Bent, George Bent, and Charles Bent.

An Introduction

Welcome to the Prairie Trails Journal.

My interest in the central Great Plains region began about twenty years ago while on a drive from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma to Denver, Colorado with a co-worker. As we crossed the Oklahoma panhandle (No Man's Land) my friend told me stories of his great-grandfather who had been a scout and interpreter in the old west.

Edmund Guerrier had spent his life on the plains, travelling the Santa Fe Trail to Bent's Fort in southeastern Colorado. He eventually settled down on the Cheyenne Arapaho reservation in northwest Oklahoma. The town of Geary, Oklahoma is named for him.

So I continue to seek information about the life and times of Edmund Guerrier, about the people and events on those dusty trails of western Oklahoma, the Texas Panhandle, No Man's Land, western Kansas, eastern Colorado, and Nebraska.